New Delhi: Former Army chief and Union Minister Gen (Retd) V K Singh has been appointed as a mediator between government and protesting ex-servicemen over ‘One Rank One Pension’ scheme, the agitators said today as they decided to hold an ‘Aakrosh’ rally at Jantar Mantar on December 13.

As their protest entered 168th today, the war veterans are also contemplating on whether to exercise legal option to fight the government on the OROP issue.

The protesting veterans claimed that they met with Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar last night and together they have decided to appoint Gen (Retd) V K Singh as a mediator.

Singh, the Minister of State for External Affairs, has been involved in back-channel negotiations on the contentious issue earlier also.

“The satyagrah has been confronted with two major challenges. These are in the form of, firstly the government notification of November 8 on OROP, and secondly the effect of the recommendations of the 7CPC (Central Pay Commission) if accepted in toto by the government,” the protesting veterans said in a statement.

Our focus and aim remains on the implementation of the OROP award without dilution and to that extent we will continue to engage with the GoI for justice, they said.

The statement added that while they appreciate the overcoming of the huddle of acceptance of OROP by the government of the day, the final thanksgiving will have to wait till the same hurdle is cleared in a clean jump rather than the “present pitfalls of a combine of created problems -referral to judicial commission – time delays- killing the very soul of OROP”.

It added that a rally would be held on December 13. A press conference is also likely to be held on December 7 which could have former BJP leader and senior lawyer Ram Jethmalani coming out in their support.

PTI

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NEW DELHI: Upset military veterans on Friday boycotted the launch of the golden jubilee celebrations of the 1965 war, even as their negotiations with the government on implementation of one rank, one pension (OROP) remained deadlocked despite further meetings.

The almost month-long celebrations of the 1965 war began with President Pranab Mukherjee paying tributes at the Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate, on a day when Indian soldiers had captured the strategic Hajipir Pass from Pakistan 50 years ago.

READ ALSO: PMO directly involved in addressing OROP, defence minister Manohar Parrikar says

PM Narendra Modi also paid tributes to the soldiers who fought the 1965 war. “As we mark the 50th anniversary of the 1965 war, I bow to all brave soldiers who fought for our motherland in the war,” the PM tweeted.

But not even two km away from the Union government’s seat on Raisina Hill, the veterans at their Jantar Mantar protest site were clearly unhappy with the continuing delay in implementation of the much-promised OROP.

They commemorated the 1965 war’s golden jubilee event in their own quiet way, with participation from some who had participated in the conflict like Brigadier (retd) D P Nayar, a Hajipir operation veteran, and Wing Commander (retd) Vinod Nebb, who was awarded the Vir Chakra for bringing down a Pakistani Sabre fighter.

The veterans did meet home minister Rajnath Singh later in the day. But much like the series of such meetings with defence minister Manohar Parrikar, PM’s principal secretary Nripendra Misra and Army chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag, the impasse persisted.

The main bone of contention has become the veterans’ demand for “pension equalization” at least once every two years, while the government is ready only for “adjustment” at five-year intervals. Another sticking point is the date of OROP implementation, with the veterans remaining steadfast about it being effective from April 2014, as they were promised earlier. From an earlier position of April 2015, the government has now come down to September 2014.

READ ALSO: Demand for rolling pension change plan holds up OROP

Parrikar, on his part, said the government was working “to fill in the small gaps” and the ex-servicemen should have some patience since the PMO was “directly involved” in resolving the OROP issue.

But this did not go down well with the veterans, who sought an immediate appointment with the PM. “We are rather disheartened. The government is saying it (pension equalization) will be done after five years, which is totally incorrect because it will defeat the very definition of OROP,” said Major-General (retd) Satbir Singh, chairman of the Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement.

“We are not asking for more than what was sanctioned. What they are offering us is not acceptable to us. I think the bureaucracy is not in favour of giving us OROP. The intention is first to dilute it and then deny it,” he added.

Holding that they had had “full faith” in Modi, the veterans said the PM should meet them to understand the correct position. “All the wrong information fed by the babus would be thrown away and what is right will be accepted and he will give us OROP in totality,” said Maj-Gen Singh.

READ ALSO: OROP talks remain deadlocked as veterans reject govt proposal

Grant of full OROP will mean an additional annual cost of at least Rs 8,300 crore as pension for the over 25 lakh veterans in the country. Taking it into account from April last year, it now adds up to at least Rs 16,600 crore, ahead of the implementation of the 7th Pay Commission from 2016 onwards, as reported by TOI earlier.

Times View

The armed forces personnel are among the most patriotic lot in the country. And as people who have the country’s interest upper most on their mind, they must realise that their one-rank-one-pension (OROP) demand is simply not feasible for any government to meet without seriously messing up its finances not just for the present but for all time to come. If the government accepts the demand that the pensions of all ex-servicemen will increase each time anybody of the same rank retires, the sheer scale of the pay-out will run into tens of thousands of crores a year at present and keep escalating with each passing day. That is clearly not a sustainable proposition. Those demanding such an arrangement are being irresponsible. Both the UPA and NDA must also bear the blame for having played competitive populism in promising they would accept the demand. But ultimately this is not just about ex-servicemen, governments or parties. It is the taxpayer whose money will be recklessly splurged if the demand is accepted, and the country’s future will be harmed. We are sure that that is the last thing our brave and patriotic soldiers want.

Source: http://mlife.mtsindia.in/

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“The protests that began in New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar last Monday, demanding immediate implementation of the OROP continues even as the government chooses to turn a blind eye towards it”

Ex-servicemen have been protesting now for a week at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, demanding the immediate implementation of the OROP scheme. Similar protests are also on at 20 important cities in the country to put pressure on the government to act.

The series of protests is jointly organized by 30 ex-servicemen welfare organizations, under the leadership of Chairman of IESM, Maj. Gen. Satbir Singh. Speaking to the media, Satbir Singh said, “Until now the Government has not tried to negotiate with us. If there are no results for the protests, we will shift our protests to Bihar.”

The protesters believe that the government will be more receptive to their demands if the protests affect the party’s chances of winning the state elections in Bihar.

BJP’s parliamentary election manifesto last year promised immediate implementation of the OROP if they come to power. After coming to power, assurances were given by the ministers including the prime minister himself.

Ex-servicemen expected a formal announcement to be made at the first year rally. But, not a word was uttered about this. The ex-servicemen did not lose hope.

On June 1, in his ‘Mann ki Baat’ radio show, the prime minister assured that he will implement the OROP scheme.

Media reports indicated that sufficient funds were allocated in the previous financial year and that steps are on to implement the scheme. Reports further added that the revised pension scheme is very similar to those of the MPs. But, one has to also accept the fact that the scheme is much closer to implementation than it ever was during the Congress regime.

Many wonder why the army-men have resorted to protests. A number of reasons are being given for the protests.

Excess of trust in Modi government is one of the reasons. Congress-led UPA government, which failed to implement the OROP scheme, suffered humiliating defeat in the elections. The second reason is that more than 30 lakh ex-servicemen and their families spread throughout the country believed in the promises made by the BJP in its election campaign.

The third reason – contradictory stands among the Ministries of Finance and Defence – is considered to be the most important. There are claims that the Ministry of Finance had asked the Defence Ministry to refer to the 7th Central Pay Commission. This is rumoured to be the stand of the bureaucrats.

There have been warnings that implementing the OROP scheme is an expensive task and changes will have to be made to the current pension structure for the Central Government employees and Pensioners. The message was subtly conveyed to the representatives of ex-servicemen by the defence ministry. This had greatly angered the delegates. Protests were launched amidst worries that OROP will be shelved again.

Even now, the ex-servicemen trust the Prime Minister Modi because he doesn’t believe the bureaucrats easily.

Source: 7thpaycommissionnews.in

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Latest news on OROP – Delegates of NeXCC discussing the OROP issue with Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar

The post Latest news on OROP – Delegates of NeXCC discussing the OROP issue with Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar appeared first on CENTRAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES NEWS.